Shadows of the Heart
by KyoxSakiFan
Summary: The feeling grew stronger with each passing day. So strong, that even he couldn't hide the effect it had on him any longer. Just what was this feeling...? :NaruGaa:
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Naruto Shippuden. This is a merely fanmade story that was inspired by some events in the actual series. I am not claiming ownership in any way. All rights reserved.**

**Okay…so…lately I've been totally obsessed with this pairing. So, I finally decided to give in and write a fanfic. . I hope to God that I keep them all in character…since I haven't written anything Naruto ever, and I haven't watched much of it for a while. I'll do my best, though. **

**Also, there will be NO character bashing. I am sick and tired of seeing fanfics bashing Sakura or Sasuke (as much as I hate him in Shippuden). So if you're here for that, then kindly go away or read at your own risk. I have high respect for each and every character and will not disrespect them in any way. **

**So, with these notes out of the way, please enjoy the first chapter. It should be a shorter chapter fanfic, with only ten chapters at the most. Updates may be slow as I have other fanfic works to keep me busy as well as my actual novel that I need to work on. Also note that this takes place after Gaara was revived after his horrific death in Shippuden. –Shivers- BTW: if you're one of the saps that cried, you're not alone.**

**Without further interruption, please enjoy my fanfic. **

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Chapter 1: Barriers of the Heart

It was a chilly night in Suna, very characteristic of the harsh desert landscape. Even so, only the highly trained ANBU members dared to brave the desert at night, due to the extreme cold that gripped the sand dwellers in its unforgiving hands. However, there was one other that strayed outside this particular night.

Gaara sat perched atop the Kazekage building, his red hair blowing serenely with the light breeze. He wasn't wearing his traditional Kazekage robes, but was dressed in his outfit of red and gray. It was one of his favorite garbs; the red in the outfit matched his hair almost perfectly.

Even though he'd been rid of his demon some time ago, there were still times like this in which Gaara stayed up most if not the entire night. It was times like these that he'd like to spend time on the roof of his quarters, having grown rather used to this habit back when he _couldn't _sleep, for fear of unleashing his demon. That beast was gone now, but it was incredibly difficult to rid yourself of a forced habit that had been with you since childhood. Although he did sleep, it was at least ten times harder for him than a normal person.

Sighing lightly through his nose, Gaara continued his silent observation of his village. He caught a glimpse of one or two ANBU members slinking around, but otherwise found no movement worthy of his attention. Growing bored, he finally allowed his mind to drift in on itself.

He would be lying if he said that his death hadn't bothered him; it had. He hadn't felt terror exactly, but a deep, vast sadness had poured through his chest when he found himself standing in an endless terrain of solid white. He'd also felt strangely empty, although he suspected that this was more due to the absence of his demon rather than anything else.

Slowly, his mind had started to grow a bit foggy until he had a hard time remembering who he was. If he'd been conscious enough to consider it, he would have realized that this was his mind slipping into the other world, but he'd been saved before he could fully reach that point.

His soul had cried out, _reached out _for someone, anyone. It didn't matter who it was, so long as Gaara could wrap his hands around something to keep him rooted to the ground. With each passing second, it felt as if he would simply float off into the white space to be forgotten from existence. Ever since he was little, this had been greatest fear; to never be acknowledged and to die a lonely death full of hatred and pain. Deep within the breaking fragments of his mind, he was able to acknowledge that his fear was becoming reality.

He'd seen a reflection of his soul; a small child that had enough of the pain and injustice. The tears ran freely down the chubby cheeks of the child, looking strangely out of place as they ran down the dark black lines that surrounded his eyes from years of forced insomnia. Gaara had vaguely considered reaching out to that child, but something had kept him rooted in place. It was then that he realized the child was indeed himself. Even as he realized this, he'd felt his mind slip even further away from reality.

Then suddenly, he heard his name. It was faint at first, but then it steadily grew louder and more frantic. He vaguely wondered just who would be calling for him that desperately. Nobody cared enough for him to do that, right?

That was when he felt it; a subtle yet overpowering touch upon his shoulder. The child Gaara had whipped around, surprised at the warmth he felt spreading through his body with the simple touch…and he found himself staring into equally warm and loving blue eyes.

Then, he'd suddenly been pulled back into reality. His eyes fluttered open, only to stare into those same blue eyes. He unconsciously fell into a state near shock as the same warmth began to spread through his body, still cold and stiff from his apparent death.

He was lying in Naruto's arms.

The blond had merely smiled at him and breathed his name, which had sounded so right coming from his lips. "Gaara…"

Feeling strangely breathless, Gaara finally allowed his gaze to drift to his surroundings, surprised to find tons of familiar faces circling him, relief evident amongst most of them.

Finally pulling out of his shock, Gaara glanced back at Naruto, one question pulling at his conscious.

'_Do they all really care that much?'_

He looked in Naruto's eyes once more and immediately knew the answer.

That had been several months ago. Since then, several things had happened, at least on Naruto's end, but now everything was at peace again. Hell, he'd even managed to bring back Sasuke, which Gaara was slightly happy for, even though he didn't particularly like the Uchiha. In fact, he extremely disliked the raven-haired teen. However, that didn't stop him from being relieved for Naruto's sake. Since Sasuke was important to Naruto, he couldn't possible be that bad, right?

Ever since then, Naruto had been visiting regularly. Gaara had puzzled over this for a while, but in the end it had been his ever-observant sister, Temari, that had pointed out what should have been completely obvious.

"I think he's still a bit shaken up over your death. Granted, I think we all are, but Naruto took it really hard. He was still crying when we found him, you know." She'd stated one morning when Gaara had actually opted to spend a mealtime with his siblings. Since Temari had immediately noticed his distress past the mask he'd forced on, Gaara had eventually relented and discussed his recent topic of ponder.

Her answer had shocked him a bit, although he was careful not to show it. Naruto…cared enough to _cry_? From what he'd gathered, even his siblings hadn't shed a tear, although they were visibly shaken. So why would the blonde…?

Gaara was still determined to question his friend the next time he saw him. As it was, Naruto was expected to visit within the next few days, so Gaara had little time to prepare what exactly he was going to say to Naruto. He still didn't talk much, which wouldn't work in his favor, even though Naruto did seem to have a strange ability to read his emotions. He'd have to question him about that to…

Gaara wasn't ashamed to admit (at least to himself) that he was actually looking forward to seeing his hyperactive friend. The blonde had a strange way of bringing out the best in him, even enticing a smile every once in a while to spread across the stoic read head's face. It didn't take a genius to tell that Gaara was fond of the blond. On the contrary, everyone could see that. The fact that he tolerated his constant talking when he normally disliked people like that was enough to show this.

A strange feeling settled in his chest and Gaara unconsciously gripped at his heart through the fabric of his shirt, tightening when the feeling grew stronger. Just what was this feeling?

He knew one thing for sure; he had plenty of time to contemplate it once Naruto arrived.

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**Man, this sucks. Oh well. Hope you still like it…Please review! And no NaruGaa hate comments!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, this would definitely be animated. Sasuke wouldn't be such an annoying jerkwad in Shippuden, and NaruGaa would be cannon. That is all.**

**Okay, I was re-reading this and realized that I accidentally used a line from another NaruGaa fanfic my friend made. XD She doesn't mind though. We ARE best friends, so it's kinda funny how well we think alike…I hadn't even read that fanfic in like two weeks, so it was completely by accident. XDXDXDXDXD **

**Anyway, I didn't expect anyone to actually like this. Since some people reviewed (THANK YOU), I will continue now. Hope you like this chapter.**

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Chapter 2: Indecision of the Heart

As expected, Naruto bustled through the gates of Suna two days later, a large smile on his face. Gaara was quite enthusiastic about seeing the blonde, although those that didn't know him well wouldn't be able to tell the difference between his usual stoic expressions. His siblings had noticed immediately however and had gone with their younger brother to greet Naruto.

Almost instantly upon seeing Gaara, Naruto's smile grew larger until it covered the entire expanse of his face. "Yo, Gaara! Bet you weren't expecting me so early, dattebayo!"

On the contrary, Gaara had been expecting the blonde to arrive _earlier_, but he decided against commenting and instead focused on absorbing Naruto's constant radiance. It was as if his mere presence made his life just a little bit happier. Gaara didn't understand why this was, but he wasn't about to toy with what had already come to be. Besides, it wasn't as if it was anything bad anyway.

Then, Gaara noticed something that should have been obvious to him upon first glance. Even though Naruto was smiling very convincingly, there was a subtle glimmer of something else in his eyes. Had Gaara been anyone else, his eyes probably would have narrowed in concentration as he contemplated this. Had something happened to Naruto?

"Naruto, come with me." Naruto glanced up at the mention of his name, his eyes widening in shock. Obviously he'd been hoping that Gaara wouldn't catch on to his distress, but now he had the appearance of a deer caught in headlights. Temari and Kankurou merely looked confused, not understanding the situation at all. For this, Gaara was grateful; the last thing he needed was his siblings drilling him about this later.

Naruto followed him without a world, which was quite unusual. Usually, the hyperactive ninja would be practically bouncing off the walls, hurriedly discussing one subject after another. The absence of his natural chatter caused an awkward silence that neither was willing to fill.

To Naruto's obvious surprise, Gaara led him into his office where he gestured with his hands to take a seat anywhere. However, Naruto refused this luxury and instead opted to lean against the wall where he had a clear view of the entire room. Gaara considered sitting at his desk, but after a moment decided against it. If Naruto was standing, then he should stand too.

"I'm not oblivious Naruto, something's wrong." Gaara stated bluntly, startling the blonde out of his thoughts. Naruto had the conscious to look the slightest bit guilty, although there were still the twirling shadows of frustration and sadness lingering in his cobalt eyes.

"Yeah…" Naruto sighed softly, running a hand through his hair, unknowingly portraying the nervousness that he was feeling. "It's…well…" He stopped for a moment, his eyes taking on a somewhat ghostly appearance. It was as if the blonde wasn't actually standing in front of him, but was rather a thousand miles away, his mind exploring some far away land that Gaara couldn't reach out to.

"…Naruto?" When he didn't respond, Gaara sighed lightly and moved so that he was standing directly in front of him, his arms crossed over his chest in irritation. "Naruto!"

Naruto seemed to snap out of whatever daze he was in and absently lifted his eyes to look into Gaara's dull green orbs. Gaara was surprised to see the beginning of unshed tears forming in his eyes, although his friend was obviously trying to hold them back.

"H-Hinata…she was killed." Naruto seemingly choked on his words, stubbornly trying to keep his shoulders from shaking too much, although a light tremble racked his body every now and then. "Our village was attacked…and she was badly injured so she couldn't defend herself…"

Thinking back to the last time he was in Naruto's village, Gaara was able to briefly recall a mental image of a shy young girl with shiny blue hair and a small yet meaningful smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. Every time he'd seen her, a chalky blush was always present across her pale cheeks, giving off the appearance of a delicate and gentle being. Although Gaara hadn't known her personally, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of remorse when he saw the look in Naruto's eyes.

"We may not have been…best friends like I am with Sakura and Sasuke, but she was still one of my friends! And she didn't deserve to die like this! She was a really nice person, Gaara! I think it was impossible to say anything mean to her, because there was nothing that she could do to make me mad enough to do it…" Naruto admitted quietly, his eyes shining with tears once again. "And I feel so bad…because a little while ago, I found out that she was…well, you know…"

"No, I don't know Naruto. I am not a mind reader, nor am I a psychic. If you wish to say it, then say it directly." Gaara responded rather bluntly once more, his eyes narrowing slightly, as if daring Naruto to stray off the path a little more.

To this, Naruto visibly flushed a little, nervousness leaking through his expression once more. "She, well…she was…in love with me. Not the family or friend love…but you know, _love_. I feel so guilty because I turned her down and continued chasing after Sakura, when I should have paid more attention to her. I think that I should've at least hung out with her more…Maybe I wouldn't feel so…rotten."

Gaara wasn't surprised to hear this in the least. Naruto always did tend to take every burden possible on his own shoulders, even when they truly weren't all his to bear. The smallest things among the larger things would stack up until he had to wonder how Naruto bore it all---and continued to _smile _no less! When Gaara had been deeply hurt, he'd chosen to block out all form of emotion from his senses except for _anger_. Anything to keep the raw hurt from sinking through. After a while, he'd even managed to convince himself. So when he'd met Uzumaki Naruto, he'd been sincerely shocked when Naruto had seen through every barrier Gaara had erected around his being to the hidden emotions inside. Even now, Gaara still couldn't understand how he did it.

If he were alone, Gaara would have reached up to trace the writing on his forehead. _Love_ it said, quite ironic since most of his life Gaara had been unfairly deprived of it. So he understood where Naruto was coming from. Even though Naruto hadn't returned her feelings, he'd still cared deeply for Hinata and her death would effect him greatly, seeing as how she was probably the only person that had expressed such an interest in him for his whole life thus far. She was precious and Naruto had lost her.

Gaara wanted to say something, but to his dismay, found that he couldn't find anything to say. Naruto's shoulders were openly shaking now, and after looking a little closer, Gaara noticed a small wet bead travel down the side of his face.

"Naruto, crying will not bring her back. I highly doubt that she'd wish to see you like this." He'd meant it as an attempt to calm his friend, but knew instantly that it hadn't come out right. That much was obvious from the way Naruto's shoulders stiffened instantly as if he'd been struck.

"I cried when you died…and you came back! So why can't I cry for someone else, d-dattebayo?!"

Feeling a strange impulse flood through his being, Gaara blinked in surprise to stifle it. No, he did not give _hugs_. Physical contact was still a little strange as far as he was concerned considering that nearly everyone had been too afraid to try it up till a small while ago. So why was he even considering giving one himself? Had Naruto really broke through his barriers so thoroughly that they didn't affect him anymore…?

"Crying didn't bring me back…you did." Gaara responded after a few moments, his eyes uncharacteristically drifting lower than the blonde's face. Even so, he still watched as Naruto's head snapped up in surprise, having been looking down before.

"N-no I didn't! That was the old lady Chiyo, not me!"

"But it was your chakra and it was…your hand I felt when I awoke." A strange warmth erupted in his stomach when he remembered how warm and comforted he'd felt in Naruto's arms, but he quickly stomped the feeling down. "Chiyo's sacrifice was admirable, but _you _saved me too, Naruto. Hinata may have been the first, but there will be another that will grow to love you."

Gaara didn't know much about love, but he did know enough to realize that it wasn't necessarily a one-time thing. Although there were a few lucky individuals who stayed together through death and back, there were some who eventually fell out of love and found another. There was also the saying that 'no matter who you are, there is at least one person in this world that loves you' (Gaara hadn't believed it up until a few months beforehand). So someone else would find Naruto. For the kitsune's sake, Gaara absently wondered if it would be soon.

"Hehehe…sorry about that. But thanks, I really needed that." Naruto sniffed and wiped the tears from his face, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Now, enough with the crying and stuff, dattebayo!!! I came here to visit you, not bore you to death with my gruesome tales!"

'_That was hardly gruesome nor was it boring.' _Gaara thought, but didn't bother to say it aloud.

"So…want to go and get something to eat, or well…we could do something else…anything other than sitting here in this boring office!" Naruto stated, a whiny edge to his voice. Gaara couldn't help but wonder how he'd recovered from his small breakdown so quickly, but chose to ponder it at a later time.

"I have a few more documents and missions to approve, but we can go get something after that." He relented, not quite feeling up to arguing with the blonde. The loud ninja smirked at the thought of food, images of at least fifty types of ramen playing through his mind. Gaara resisted the urge to roll his eyes and sat down stiffly at his desk, his gaze drifting toward the unsigned documents that sat waiting for him there. They seemed to taunt him as he stared, which only seemed to aggravate him. Sighing lightly, he began his work, doing his best to ignore his friend for the time being; there was plenty of time to be worried about Naruto later.

But why was he so worried?

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**Probably a little OOC, but I truly did my best. **


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Let's get one thing straight. If I owned Naruto, Gaara would be getting infinite screen time. Since he's currently disappeared from the series completely, it's safe to assume that I am in fact not the owner of Naruto.

Okay, I'm sorry guys. I know I promised this update sooner to those of you that actually know me, but I really didn't feel up to writing until now. I've fallen under the spell known as 'Twilight'. XD I was reading it before I hopped on after considering my promise to write. I decided to at least start this chapter before I went back to reading…so here I am. Just so you guys know, I didn't really have anything planned specifically for this chapter…so I'm pulling this out of nowhere.

Chapter 3: Restlessness of the heart

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Something was wrong. Or at least, that's what Gaara's conscience kept insistently telling him. With each day that passed, he became even more anxious and jumpy, although neither of which outright showed.

Naruto hadn't visited in four months. The most the blonde had waited to visit him was two, but otherwise he'd taken it upon himself to visit every month. At first, Gaara had assumed that he was just busy; he did keep mentioning some training that Kakashi was giving him. By the second month, Gaara started to become a little nervous. But now they were at four months and Gaara was seriously considering marching over there to discover why his best friend hadn't visited him in so long.

Wait…_best friend?_

Gaara paused, allowing the papers that he held to fall limply onto his desk. Just how long had he considered the blonde to be his best friend? Of course it only made perfect sense considering how few true friends he really had (most were just work partners or acquaintances, or his siblings), but just when had Gaara started labeling Naruto with that title?

Brushing off his thoughts for the moment, Gaara bent down to pick up the papers he'd dropped earlier. He had a few more documents to read through before he could officially consider himself done. He had half a mind to just ask one of his siblings to take charge for a few days and take a small…vacation of some sorts. Now, normally he wouldn't even consider such a thing by himself. However, it was becoming increasingly difficult to work day after day with the large gaping hole that seemed to be enveloping his chest.

It wasn't a physical hole exactly, but rather…a feeling. Gaara felt an ache like nothing he'd ever felt before. Sure, he'd ached while thinking of Naruto before, but it was more dull and less…consuming. Sometimes, he felt like he was being swallowed up by his chest into a large empty void. With each passing day, the feeling only seemed to grow stronger until it was never really gone. Sure, he'd grown used to it enough to block it out when he had important work to do, but he could never actually rid himself of the feeling.

Despite having contemplated it several times, he still found that he couldn't find the answers that he desperately needed. What was this feeling and why wouldn't it go away? Why did he only ache when he thought about Naruto and most importantly…why was Naruto's absence affecting him so badly?

That night, he was unable to sleep. This had grown into a common occurrence for the past month or so. He would stay awake and stare up at the ceiling, allowing his thoughts to reach into the deepest depths of his complicated labyrinth mind. Gaara would sometimes ponder some of the most meaningless things, although his thoughts always drifted to Naruto. He would ponder as to how the blonde was doing among other things. Tonight, Gaara was trying to figure out a way to contact his friend. Perhaps he should send a letter…?

He shook his head softly, his mind erasing the suggestion entirely. As much as it hurt to wait, he couldn't deny that he wanted Naruto to reach out to him _first. _Perhaps it was a bit selfish to wish for something like that, but he wanted to know that Naruto was thinking of him and really wanted to speak to him. Sometimes when he approached others, it made him feel like they didn't really care, so he preferred it when they sought him instead.

The ache burned in his chest again and Gaara unconsciously grasped at it, his hand balling into a fist, as if hoping that the action would rip the pain away. Unfortunately, the pain continued to throb uncontrollably, only it felt a little…colder than before, more raw and bitter. Did the thought that perhaps Naruto didn't want to be around him as much as he tried to be hurt that much?

The second he consciously considered the thought, he gasped silently as a thick river of what only could be described as anguish flooded his lungs and sunk down into the other crevices of his chest. It was deeper than sadness, yet it was beyond physical hurt. He knew that he would live; yet he feared that it would somehow have the power to overcome him.

Feeling a little childish, Gaara finally decided to give up on his slumber and climbed carefully onto the roof.

The cold breeze that hit him the second he set foot atop the building was a welcome distraction from Gaara's strange thoughts. Had he not been used to the extreme weather, he would have shivered when the cold hit his unusually warm skin. He felt as if he'd been sitting beside an oven while Temari tried to bake, which never seemed to turn out well. For some reason, he tended to have random hot flashes afterwards, although Temari always insisted that he had a fever whenever it happened. Perhaps he was experiencing a fever?

Gaara unconsciously raised his hand to feel his forehead, relieved to find that it was the normal temperature. It must've been his imagination.

Sighing almost unnoticeably, Gaara settled down and stared off into he night. Giving in to the urge, he allowed his eyes to close lightly and unconsciously began to imagine the happy blonde sitting beside him. He would most likely be laughing about some joke or another, not caring that Gaara never joined in on the merriment. Instead, he chose to laugh with his eyes, or at least that's what Naruto had always told him.

'_I'm going over there.' _Gaara finally decided, determination blocking out the pulsing ache a little. There was no way that Naruto would wait this long. Hell, he'd snuck out a few times to come see him so Tsunade keeping him tied up wasn't the problem. Naruto would just have to deal with their visit being turned around for once.

Once this decision was made, Gaara decided to try to get some sleep once more.

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**There aren't any words to describe how crappy this is. It's so unorganized and terrible. XD **


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto in any way. This is a fanfic. A very crappy one, too. So no suing!!!!!!**

**Okay...I'm so sorry guys. Not only have I not updated in like fifty years, but this chapter is a piece of crap and this story probably will turn out that way in the end. D: I sort of...fell out of the Naruto fandom. -Gaspeth- I still read, watch it, etc, but I haven't been able to write anything decent for it. I SHALL finish this story, but -do not- expect any of the timeline, etc, to be correct. For those of you that read the recent chapters, then you know that the village was destroyed. Well, in here it's still standing, but it takes place afterward. -CONFUSION- So, yeah. Just ignore that...**

**Anyway, on to the piece of crap chapter. I've decided that there's only a few more left, since I'll only ruin it more if I attempt more than that. D: Besides, I've got more fanfics to worry about for fandoms that I can actually write: Gx for example. Lol**

**Chapter 4: Yearnings of the Heart**

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Gaara couldn't get over how exceedingly awkward this was.

Having arrived in Kanoha that morning, Gaara had expected to just march right up to Naruto and demand why he hadn't been visiting him (he never was subtle, he preferred the blunt and to the point approach on life). However, he'd quickly learned upon arriving that this was not to be.

For one thing, he'd nearly been attacked at the gate into the village. Gaara was puzzled; they had a truce, so shouldn't he be allowed to freely enter the village as he pleased? Temari, who had gone with him, had also been struck by the huge increase in security. Sure, they'd both learned that Kanoha had been under attack, but they hadn't been given the exact details of the event.

And then, once they were actually let in, they were sent immediately to see Tsunade, much to Gaara's annoyance. He didn't want to sit in the Hokage's office and discuss trivial matters. He wanted to see Naruto and he wanted to see him _now._

So after about an hour of small talk with Tsunade, Gaara had finally managed to pry his location from Tsunade's drunken lips (Gaara made a mental note to bring alcohol next time he visited) and left the Hokage's building in search of the ramen loving, blonde haired boy that he'd become so fond of.

Finally, after at least an hour of aimless searching, Gaara managed to find Naruto (it wouldn't have taken as long if he'd had Temari to help, but she'd ditched him when he was locked inside Tsunade's office, so he was by himself).

Naruto was found alone in a large field, complete with a gigantic waterfall and surrounded by a thick layer of trees. Gaara blinked at the sight he was greeted with when he first saw the blonde and wisely chose to remain under the cover of the trees so as to avoid disturbing Naruto's concentration.

Said boy was currently standing in front of the waterfall in all his glory. He was shirtless (Gaara still couldn't figure out why he was drawn repeatedly to this fact) and held a look of intense concentration as he pressed his hands flat against the gently sloping rock beneath the waterfall. He looked to be meditating or something along that line, so Gaara was hesitant to disturb him. But it seemed that his concern was put to waste, however, because Naruto suddenly straightened up and spun around, a huge grin on his face.

"Yo, Gaara! What are you doing here, dattebayo?"

Blinking in surprise (Gaara was almost certain that Naruto was too intensely concentrated on what he was doing and wouldn't notice his presence), Gaara finally left the cover of the trees and walked slowly over to the blonde.

"I could ask you the same question." Gaara replied, no hint of emotion reflecting in his voice. But on the inside, he could feel a large weight lift off his chest. He could already feel himself becoming happier by just being near Naruto; it was amazing the effect he had on him.

"Well...hehehe," Naruto chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head in a signature gesture. "I've been training a lot, especially since the attack. You can't be too careful, you know?"

"Is that why you haven't been visiting?" Gaara questioned after a moment, his eyes narrowing subtly. Naruto blinked at his question, shock adorning his features.

"Well, yeah. I've been ordered on a ton of missions and we have Sasuke of course, and then there was the whole 'recovering from the attack' thing, and my training. So, I guess I have been a little busy," Naruto replied casually, gesturing toward the waterfall. "I learned how to cut a waterfall into pieces with my chakra a while back, so I was just practicing."

"I see."

Suddenly, realization seemed to dawn on Naruto.

"Aw, you were just worried about me, weren't you, dattebayo?!" Naruto shouted playfully, slipping an arm around Gaara's shoulders. "Well, why didn't you just say so?!"

"I'd heard about the attack on the village and was worried about the state of your economic matters, that's all." Gaara replied in his usual emotionless voice, although Naruto was quickly able to read his actual emotions.

"Aw, are you embarrassed? Come on, give me a hug!"

For some reason, the prospect of Naruto giving him a proper hug made him feel warm and soft inside.

"I have a meeting to attend."

"Aw, come on, Gaara!"

**AN: This is BY FAR the crappiest thing I've ever written, but I shall post it anyway out of desperation.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto in any way.**

**So, I was watching all the Naruto episodes I missed while I was on restriction and it randomly put me in the mood to update this story. I need to finish this so I can focus on my other stuff, but I'll try to avoid rushing it. ^^ Hope you like this chapter!**

Chapter 5: A Heart's Realizations

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"Are you sure that this is acceptable, Naruto? Tsunade already told me that I could stay in the lodgings—"

"Quit being such a cold fish, of course it's fine! Why wouldn't I want my best buddy to stay with me?"

Gaara nearly stumbled, recalling the conversation he'd had with himself before deciding to visit Naruto. For some reason, hearing those words…made him feel warm…and a little sad?

"And Sakura-chan was telling me all about the—um…hey, are you all right?" Naruto halted abruptly in his musings, moving so that he was standing in front of Gaara, therefore blocking his way from moving.

Gaara stopped to catch his breath as he nearly rammed into the chest of the blonde, knowing that he'd been caught. "It's nothing."

Instead of moving like Gaara had hoped he would, Naruto merely stood in place, his eyes narrowing. Gaara held his chin high, unconsciously letting his barriers rise. Nobody was allowed past those barriers…not even—!

"Does staying with me bother you that much, Gaara? I didn't mean to offend you…I just thought it would be nice to stay with someone that you knew well, that's all."

And once he heard the genuine hurt in Naruto's voice…the barriers all came crashing down. Oh hell—he was in deep. Nobody had ever affected him like this…

"That's not it, Naruto. Please don't concern yourself with it." It meant to come out soothing…but Gaara would be the first to admit that he didn't really have much experience with calming people. Hell, he had no experience with people whatsoever, as far as he was concerned.

Yet, Naruto didn't take his gruff tone to heart. Instead, his blue eyes lit up with a gentle understanding…

And there went his heart again. If he kept this up, he was going to drop of a heart attack!

"I hope you don't mind ramen for dinner…I don't really have anything else," Naruto admitted sheepishly, chuckling nervously. "If I'd known you were coming, I would've stocked up on some different food—"

"Ramen's fine." Gaara cut him off before he could finish, not wanting him to feel that his hospitality wasn't appreciated.

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"I'm surprised that I haven't seen Uchiha since coming here. Is he perhaps on a mission?" Gaara questioned, his genuine curiosity burning through his gaze. Naruto sighed in satisfaction at having finished his meal, but Gaara caught the flicker of a strange emotion in his eyes.

"Yeah…he's um…probably off with Sakura-chan…he spends a lot of time with her now."

Gaara slowly set down his chopsticks, his eyes narrowing in thought. "This…bother's you…does it not?"

Naruto opened his mouth—probably to object to this statement—but seemed to think better of it and quickly closed it, his eyes drifting anywhere else other than Gaara's knowing gaze.

"Naruto…do you…love Haruno-san?"

Naruto blinked, his mouth falling open slightly in shock. While watching him, Gaara was given the impression of a gaping fish.

"I…I don't know," Naruto finally answered after a few moments, a clouded look entering his gaze. "I mean, I used to like her a lot…and I do feel a little lonely now that she's spending so much time with Sasuke…but I guess I should've expected it; she's been totally in love with him since we first started out…"

For some reason, Gaara felt slightly relieved, although he couldn't begin to fathom the reason why. Yet, his heart was urging him to ask one last question.

"Naruto, what does love feel like?"

"Hm…" Naruto leaned back against the couch, his eyes losing the clouded look. "What's with all the love questions today, Gaara?"

"Because," He answered softly, "I think I might be in love with someone."

Naruto blinked again in surprise and turned to stare at him in shock. He was about to say something when he caught something out of the corner of his eye that stopped him in his tracks.

Gaara wasn't used to the feeling that was assaulting him. How could this possibly be love? Wasn't it supposed to be a good feeling? If so…if he really was in love with…Naruto, then why did it feel like he was slowly suffocating?

He clenched his fists, unaware that he was doing so. _'Tell me, Naruto. Please tell me that I'm wrong…'_

"Well, Gaara, love…it's complicated," Naruto started nervously. Love was something that Naruto didn't feel very comfortable talking about, really. But he knew that he was probably the only one that Gaara trusted to educate him in such a private subject and he felt curiosity peaking the surface as to whom Gaara was claiming to have these feelings for. "It's generally a nice feeling…but it can hurt a lot sometimes, especially if that person doesn't love you back. But if it's real love—not just lust—then you'll care more about the person's well-being than your own happiness."

Gaara clenched his fists tighter.

'_No…why Naruto, of all people? Why…did I fall in love with you?'_

Yet, he knew the reason. When he'd needed someone, when his soul was all but torn into shreds, it had been Naruto that reached out and picked up the pieces. And although he was still healing, Naruto never ceased to make him feel…wanted.

Looking at it from a different perspective, he supposed it had been a matter of time before he'd fallen for the blonde. His savior…his best friend…his love.

Hell, he'd really gotten himself into a pickle this time.

"So Gaara, do you think its love?" Naruto questioned, leaning forward once more, his eyes automatically measuring Gaara's actions.

"Yes." Gaara breathed without hesitation.

"So, who is it then? Come on—you can tell me anything! I promise I won't tell a soul!" Naruto grinned, probably trying to lighten the mood. Yet, Gaara couldn't bring himself to look him in the eye.

"I can't tell you." Gaara finally answered, noticing with unease that his breath had caught in his throat at the last second, betraying his feelings through his voice.

"Aw, come on, seriously. Don't you trust me, dattebayo?" Naruto whined, although it didn't reach it's usually pitch.

"It's…not you that I don't trust," Gaara answered honestly before picking himself up off the couch and heading to the kitchen. "I'm going to make some coffee."

"Gaara…" Naruto reached out after the retreating back of his friend, noting with unease that Gaara seemed intent on ignoring his gesture.

Something was wrong. Really wrong.

Naruto was going to find out what.

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I can't believe I'm saying this, but…I actually like this chapter. O.o


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto! This fanfic is purely fanmade, hence "fanfic." So stay away, evil lawyers!**

**So, since I've been doing nothing but video editing for the past week, I decided to go ahead and update my fanfics. It's the weekend, it needs to be done, so what the hell? XD**

**Warning: This was written with nothing specific in mind for this chapter. The events below are considered a filler chapter! X3**

**Chapter 6: A Heart's Ache**

**________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

Gaara was immensely grateful when Naruto didn't follow him into the kitchen, for after he was out of sight he fell lightly against the wall, creating a small thump, but not one loud enough to make Naruto come running. His hand reached up to his chest again where the usually steady beat of his heart was making hard erratic sounds and gripped it in his hands.

No, this wasn't a nice feeling. This was nothing more than a hellish nightmare; it couldn't be happening to him, it just couldn't! Because love was _good _and it didn't _hurt _like this…

Never had Gaara felt so weak. Not even when he'd woken from his deathbed in Naruto's strong arms had he felt as weak and tired as he felt now. It was like…all will he'd had to move simply had dissolved from his body, leaving a trembling shell of its former self.

Not being one to lie, Gaara forced himself to calm down and took a few shaking steps toward the cabinet and opened it, feeling a sense of calm overtake him as he viewed the obviously unused coffee grounds hidden in the back of large stacks of different flavored ramen. Honestly, how Naruto didn't die of some sort of nutritional lack was beyond him.

Naruto…

_Damn it all to hell!_

Okay, this was starting to get a little ridiculous. He'd never really needed anyone like this…so why…?

Gaara blinked in surprise when the coffee pot started making noise and realized that he'd made the coffee unconsciously while he'd been lost in his thoughts. Had he been anyone else, he probably would've found it funny that it'd become such an automatic action that he didn't even spill a grain of coffee during the process, but Gaara didn't bother giving it a second thought.

"Gaara, do you want to use my bed tonight? I'll sleep on the couch." Naruto suddenly walked into the kitchen and went straight for the fridge. When opened, it revealed a large stash of water bottles, which Naruto instantly went for.

"That's all right, Naruto. I doubt that I'll be sleeping tonight."

Naruto straightened up, his bottle of unopened water in hand. "But…aren't you at least going to try? Not getting any sleep isn't very good for you, dattebayo!!!"

"Did you forget that I don't sleep very much as it is, Naruto?" Gaara responded, bringing his newly poured cup of steaming hot coffee to his lips. Ah—that hit the spot nicely. With that caffeine dose so late, there was no way in hell that he'd be able to sleep.

"Eh—that's right…" Naruto stared at Gaara for a few seconds longer, as if debating on whether or not he should say something, but then decided against it and opted to chug his drink.

"Drinking real fast isn't good for you either, Naruto." Gaara pointed out, his voice sounding completely serious even though it was obviously intended to be a joke. Naruto, after he'd finished downing the water bottle, pouted and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yeah—well!!!!"

During this moment, Gaara was tempted to pull a Sasuke and say something along the lines of, "Nice comeback, dweeb." But he fought against it.

"Will you be training tomorrow?"

"Eh—of course! I need to stay in shape so I can become Hokage!" Naruto enthusiastically stated, his eyes alit with a burning flame. "I can't let you outdo me, dattebayo!!!!"

"Out…do you?" _No, Naruto, if anything you've outdone __**me.**_

"Well…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "When I'd heard you became Kazekage, I was happy for you, really I was! But I was a little jealous that you'd gotten so far ahead of me, y'know?"

"I suppose," Gaara replied thoughtfully. Truthfully, he was glad from the distraction. How ironic that he was using the one that he needed to be distracted _from _to distract him.

Sometimes, logic made no sense.

"But, you know, I don't like being jealous of others. It kinda…makes me feel…like I'm not good enough."

A look entered his beautiful blue eyes then, a look that Gaara couldn't stand to see.

_Hopelessness._

That's when Gaara realized just how foolish he was acting.

Sure, he had his wounds. But how could he have forgotten that Naruto did too? Not to mention that Naruto still _had _his demon and always would; it wasn't like Gaara's miracle could be repeated.

"Naruto…have the villagers…accepted you?"

Naruto snapped out of his gaze, surprise adorning his features. "Well, most of them…yes…"

"But some of them still dislike you." Gaara said this as a statement, because he knew before Naruto answered that this was true.

"Yeah, but it's okay! I just have to try a little harder, dattebayo!!!"

_Try a little harder…_

"So, I'll be leaving for training early in the morning!"

_Should I…?_

"Y'know, if you want to, you can tag along!"

_Should I even…consider it…?_

"Although, with you there, it might disrupt my concentration! Hm…"

_Trying…to earn his love?_

"Gaara?"

_I want to…more than anything! Because…Naruto…_

"Hey, Gaara!"

_I love you._

"I'm going to earn it."

Naruto stopped speaking then, his brows furrowing in confusion. "What—"

_To hell with it._

"Your love. I'm going to earn it."

Naruto's eyes widened in surprise and Gaara could barely bring himself to look at the blonde when his name left his trembling lips. "G-Gaara?"

Brushing past Naruto, Gaara left the confused blonde standing in the kitchen, a look of shock and realization on his face.

"Gaara…did he just say…?"

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**Okay, I unintentionally lied. It's not fully a filler chapter, it's actually somewhat important. XD Oh God, do I fail. lol**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. This fanfiction is based purely upon fanmade occurrences that I create within the crevices of my own deformed mind for the entertainment of others and myself.**

**Okay, so I'm updating this again! Cause I'm actually starting to like finally like my own story! YAY. I'm so happy that you guys like it so much! ^^ Anyway, enjoy this one!**

**Chapter 7: Comforts of the Heart**

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The breeze felt exceptionally cool on Gaara's skin as he walked calmly out onto the roof. The shock of it all hadn't really settled in yet, so he merely stood looking out over the sleeping village for several minutes. He caught a small glimpse of his sister weaving among the buildings with Shikamaru (what she saw in him, he may never know), but didn't bother to wave or make any contact whatsoever. She knew where he was staying, so if she needed him, then she could easily find him herself.

After a few minutes, the blackness surrounding his thoughts began to clear and realization set it. He'd done it; came right out and said it. Well, not exactly, but he could tell that Naruto definitely got the point this time from the look on his face.

Gaara couldn't help but wonder how Naruto was taking it. He hadn't exactly given the blonde much time to present an opinion on the matter since he left right away (he'd been far too nervous to stay any longer). Would Naruto reject him? If so, would his heart be able to take it?

His heart clenched at the thought and he unconsciously fisted the material covering it from his shaking hands, a gesture that was always so automatic to him that he no longer noticed that he did it. Emotions ran like fire through his veins, scorching him from the inside and burning him piece by piece.

_No, I don't think I could…_

But _why?_

What was it about Naruto that made him feel…so strong, yet so weak inside? He wasn't acting like himself at all! To lower down to the level of a love struck girl with her first real love…

Gaara narrowed his eyes in detest at his thoughts, not liking the way they were headed. No, he did _not _just compare himself to a girl. He had enough problems without adding gender identity to the list.

"…Gaara?"

Gaara stiffened in shock, his hands trembling so subtly in response, although it'd almost been enough to drop the coffee that he'd forgotten about until just then.

He knew that Naruto was waiting for a response, but Gaara didn't bother to give one. Instead, he chose to daintily sip from his coffee. What could he say to the blonde anyway? Hell, Gaara hadn't even thought that he'd seek him out; he'd expected that he'd be far too shocked to do anything of the sort.

It seemed he was wrong, however.

Naruto spoke then, a hurt note resounding in his voice. "Please…can we just talk? I mean, I know you don't talk much, but _please…"_

Perhaps it was the pleading he felt in his voice, or maybe it was the guilt he felt for leaving the blonde so confused. Either way, something seemed to possess Gaara as he turned subtly to face the blonde, although to most it would look as if he hadn't moved an inch.

He could see Naruto out of the corner of his eye now. Naruto was trembling slightly, his eyes ghosted over with shock and confusion. But what tore him up inside was the scared look on his face.

"Naruto, are you…afraid of me…?" Gaara asked suddenly, earning a shocked glance from his friend.

Naruto didn't answer right away, which only served to increase the tension between them. In reality, the silence had only lasted less than a minute, but to Gaara it'd felt like several hours of frantic waiting.

"No," Naruto finally said, his voice sounding raspy and shaky with suppressed emotions. "No, I'm not afraid of you…but…"

Gaara waited patiently. It seemed that Naruto was having trouble making sense of his own words.

"Gaara, are you…in love with me?"

Of course, it was so hard to say it indirectly—now he had to come out and say it right! Thanks for making things easier, Naruto!

"Yes," Gaara answered simply, noticing that Naruto's eyes widened in response. The blonde opened his mouth a few times to answer, but seemed to think better of it.

The silence continued.

Gaara, although having grown out of any and all suicidal thoughts for a while now, was half tempted to choke himself. How could he have let this happen? He shouldn't of said anything!

He could've just been the best friend…even though his heart was ripped into pieces.

"Naruto, if you have nothing to say, then I implore you to leave," Gaara spoke somewhat coldly, shocking the blonde as if he'd been smacked across the face. "You know of my feelings, so why do you make it harder for me by taunting me with your presence?"

"H-hey, stop that! I was worried about you, dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed, his voice rising in volume. "I'm trying to help!"

_I hate to tell you…but…_

"There's only one way you could possibly help, Naruto."

Naruto looked inquisitive for a moment, before realization dawned on his face.

_Tell me that you love me._

"G-Gaara…that…that is…" Naruto began, his eyes ghosting over once more. "That's…complicated. I mean, I don't really know how I feel about you, and…this is just so sudden, y'know?"

"No, Naruto, it's been happening for a while now," Gaara breathed, finally downing the last of his coffee. "It was just easier to suppress before."

Naruto stood in silence, his head hung low. This was unusual for him, since Gaara knew that characteristically the blonde preferred to fill in the silences with anything to keep them from lasting too long.

"Naruto, why did you look afraid earlier?" Gaara inquired, returning to the original subject. Naruto started, an unreadable look on his face.

"…Hinata…told me she loved me…but now she's gone." Naruto swallowed nervously, sweat glistening on his face. "What if…you…but, just how could anyone love me? I mean; I'm not…"

"Your rambling, Naruto."

Naruto flushed darkly. "Man, this sucks cause I honestly don't know what to say to you. What did you mean by 'earning my love' earlier, then?"

"I mean exactly what it implies," Gaara began, his tone unreadable. "I'm going to become stronger and more dependable, so that I may be worthy of your love."

Naruto blinked in surprise. "Gaara…I…"

Gaara slowly stood up, his back to Naruto in order to hide his expression. "Naruto…I've never felt anything like this…so don't ask me to give up my love without at least being given the illusion of a chance."

Naruto's eyes widened, but before he could say anything, Gaara lept skillfully off the rooftop and walked stiffly toward the building where his siblings were staying.

"I shall stay with my siblings tonight."

Naruto didn't so much as move when Gaara's stoic voice drifted back to him on the wind. It sounded so…indifferent, but Naruto knew better, because inside of that stoic voice…a little boy cried out in agony.

Naruto crumpled the plastic cup in his hand; previously forgotten, not caring that the hot liquid burned his skin and the sleeping herbs went to waste. _'Gaara…'_

_What am I supposed to say to you?_


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto! This fanfic is purely fanmade!**

…**Wow…like, seriously. Do you guys like this fanfic **_**that much? **_**O.O It's terrible! X3 But, for some reason, I like it too. XD Love drama! –Thank you, Kitsune-chan-**

**Anyway, this chapter is…kind of strange. I mean, poor Naruto is friggin' confused, Gaara's sort of…well, not even there for half the chapter…yeah. X3 I was going to have this be a short story, but…I guess that isn't happening. Curse you, fingers! Gaaaahhhh! Stop typing! Lol**

**So, enjoy the chapter, everyone! X3**

**Chapter 8: Memories of the Heart**

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Naruto sat down numbly on the cold rooftop, not bothering to run back inside for a jacket or some other means of warmth provision. Perhaps what he really wanted was to feel numb, because then the feelings in his heart would stop, even if just for a little while.

Gaara…was in love with him. It almost seemed like a dream. After all, the only other person to harbor romantic feelings toward him was Hinata and she was gone now…maybe it was a curse.

Perhaps all those that even dared to love such a monster would perish…

Naruto shook his head, feelings of hopelessness and despair bubbling up within his gut. No—he was human just like everybody else! He wasn't a monster!

Because if he was a monster, then that meant that Gaara had been a monster…and Gaara wasn't a monster.

But Gaara knew the suffering of a monster.

And so did Naruto.

Perhaps…he should give Gaara a chance? Sakura never returned his advances anyway and he was getting just a bit tired of chancing after someone with their heart set on another.

Would letting Gaara into his heart…be such a bad thing? Gaara didn't treat anything having to do with love or affection very lightly; Naruto knew that for a fact. The proof of that was the deep crimson red tattoo inscribed on Gaara's forehead, proof of his emotional deprivation while he was younger. So, he would know for a fact that Gaara's feelings were wholly sincere and that he wasn't just messing with him.

Gaara wouldn't do that…not to anyone and especially not to him, one who understood his pain and feelings more than anyone.

So then, why hadn't Naruto stopped Gaara as he walked away? He couldn't deny that he missed the steady presence of Gaara's eyes following his every move, well aware that Gaara thought he wasn't paying enough attention to notice. How could he _not _notice? Especially with his heightened senses, it was exceedingly obvious.

"I'll…talk to him first thing in the morning, dattebayo!" Naruto shouted suddenly, a determined look plastered on his face. Oh no—there was no way that he was letting Gaara walk away that easily. He'd finally found something to hold on to, and by the Gods, he _wasn't _going to let go of it.

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Naruto stepped out onto the street the next morning, his blue eyes automatically searching the crowd for the familiar splash of dark red hair that was characteristic to his friend. However, when he failed to spot it, Naruto didn't get discouraged. Instead, he merely narrowed his eyes in determination and headed off toward the building where Gaara's siblings were staying; knowing that chances were the redhead was with them still.

When he arrived at the correct room, Naruto raised his hand to knock, only to stop before he could reach the polished wood. For the first time, he noticed that he was shaking with nervousness. But how was that possible? He'd steeled himself up before walking over there so that he _wouldn't _have this problem! So why was he experiencing it _now?_

Swallowing harshly as a desperate attempt to calm himself down, Naruto finally gathered the courage to knock on the door. There was a little bit of noise from the inside, and before Naruto knew it he was face to face with Temari, who narrowed her eyes upon seeing him.

Oh _shit._

Why couldn't Kankurou have been the one to answer the door? Was Naruto's luck really _that bad?_ He liked Temari and all, but she definitely could be overprotective when it came to her brothers…

_Especially _Gaara, which was why Naruto was currently on the verge of turning and running away, because it became obvious with every silent second that passed that Gaara had indeed informed Temari of what had gone on between them.

Oh—did I mention that she didn't look very happy to see Naruto? Just in case I didn't.

"What do you want, Uzumaki?"

Naruto blinked, not used to the way she was addressing him. "Um…I need to talk to Gaara…"

Temari merely stared at him for a few seconds, her eyes scrutinizing him. Finally, after what felt like forever to Naruto, Temari looked over her shoulder and called out in her strong feminine voice. "Gaara, Naruto's here to see you, so stop hibernating in your room and get out here and talk to your boyfriend!"

Naruto blushed, finding that he was unable to look Temari in the eye anymore. _'Geeze, Temari, way to make this more awkward than it already was!'_

And Naruto didn't have time to think because suddenly, Temari's menacing presence was gone and in her place…was Gaara, whose expression Naruto simply couldn't read.

And that scared him, because Naruto could almost _always _read Gaara's expressions, whether he hid them well or not. Not being able to read Gaara's expressions meant that he was trying _extra _hard to lock him out.

And that…was a very bad thing.

"Can…we talk?"

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The walk to Naruto's usual training grounds was unusually silent and thus, seemed to take forever when it actuality it had only taken a few minutes. Once they arrived, Naruto sat down on a rock and gestured for Gaara to join him. The stoic red head moved a little closer, but chose to remain standing.

The silence passed by for a few seconds before Naruto couldn't take it any longer. "Gaara…I…I've decided…I want to try."

To any other person, Gaara didn't so much as blink. To Naruto, there was confusion shining in his eyes.

"Um…what I mean is…" Naruto gulped nervously. "I want to date you…but I'm not entirely sure how I feel yet. Is that…okay?"

Something in Gaara's eyes nearly made Naruto fall over in shock. It was a mixture of disbelief, contentment…and slight regret?

"That…sounds nice," Gaara finally admitted after a few moments, his eyes narrowing. "But, does that mean you're doing it merely to make me happy?"

Naruto actually _did _fall off the rock at this. "_What?! Are you serious?! _Gaara, you know that I'd never do that to you!"

Actually, Gaara did know that; it was just nice to hear it come from Naruto's mouth.

And after hearing it, he visibly relaxed.

"Naruto…"

"Eh—what is it, Gaara?" Naruto questioned, pulling himself back up onto the rock in order to avoid looking more like a moron than he already did.

He certainly did make good impressions.

"I love you."

And Naruto fell off the rock again. _'I don't think I'll ever get used to hearing that!'_

To this, Gaara inwardly smiled. Keyword, "inwardly."

Because outwardly showing affection wasn't his forte.

But he wasn't afraid of saying those three words to Naruto anymore….at least that was a start.

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**Yes…I'm updating again. XD I had nothing to do in Computer Arts 2, so I ended up typing out most of this chapter then. Lol**

**Hope you like! =D Kind of breaks the tension!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, however this fanfic belongs to me. :D**

**Well, I'm in the mood for writing, so here I am guys! This is turning out to be one of my most popular stories! O.O Not that I mind or anything! XD Anyway, hope you like this chapter! XP**

**Chapter 9: A Heart's Nervousness**

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They didn't do much the rest of the day. For the most part, they merely hung out, silently agreeing that they'd start the whole deal with dating _tomorrow _and not worry about it right then.

But Gaara couldn't help but dwell on it. He wanted to talk to Naruto about it and inquire as to why Naruto had come to such a confusing conclusion, not that he was complaining of course. It was just strange since Naruto had seemed so dead set against it before, or at least he had in Gaara's pessimist gaze.

However, it wasn't until the sun had begun to go down and they were walking back to Naruto's home when Gaara finally gathered up his thoughts in an orderly fashion and brought it up to the blonde.

"…Naruto…?"

Naruto instantly froze, sensing the unspoken questions hiding behind Gaara's gaze, the ones that Gaara couldn't bring himself to say.

'_Can we talk?'_

"Sure," He replied back without hesitation, although he definitely felt nervous when Gaara's gaze didn't move from him. What was so fascinating about him anyway? He wasn't that interesting: he knew this for a fact. So then, why did Gaara watch him so intently?

Naruto didn't get a chance to inquire because it was then that they arrived at Naruto's small home. Gaara strolled right in without looking at the blonde, which confused Naruto a bit, but he refrained from saying anything; Gaara wasn't one to talk much anyway.

Once they were inside, Gaara instantly went to the kitchen for a cup of coffee. Naruto sighed softly, knowing that this meant Gaara wasn't planning on sleeping that night. He wanted to stop him, but wasn't sure how to go about it.

"Gaara…will it help you sleep…if we share a bed?" He asked suddenly, leaning against the counter where Gaara was pouring water into the ancient coffee pot. The redhead froze, his eyes slowly moving to stare at Naruto. Naruto scratched the back of his head nervously.

"I didn't mean it in a bad way! I just…don't like that you don't sleep much, that's all," Naruto admitted, a small blush adorning his face. "I mean…you're sort of my…boyfriend now, so I have to make sure that you're taken care of! Uh—Not that you need to be taken care of anyway and that I wouldn't do it as a friend should, but—"

"Naruto."

Naruto halted in his nervous ranting instantly, hesitantly turning to look Gaara in the eye. The sand nin had finished pouring the coffee and was now allowing it to brew.

"Why…did you decide to…date me?" Gaara finally asked after a few moments of long silence, doing his best to avoid making it even more uncomfortable than it had been.

Naruto blinked at the question, realization dawning on him. He smiled reassuringly at his _boyfriend_—come to think of it, he liked how that sounded. It had a nice…_ring _to it. Gaara was _his _boyfriend…

Naruto chuckled suddenly, earning a very subtle glance of confusion. Shaking his head to regain composure, Naruto glanced up again, his eyes shining with merriment.

"Well…I really like you! Besides, we make the perfect match since we understand each other!"

Gaara nearly smiled. Leave it to Naruto to come up with such a simple yet complicated reason all at once. They understood each other—that was common fact. But _why _they understood each other…was much deeper than that.

…_They _were much deeper than that, Gaara knew.

"So, dude, I thought your freaky sister was going to beat the shit out of me! What the hell did you say to her?!" Naruto suddenly piped up, a freaked out expression on his face. "I seriously thought I was going to have my neck served on a platter at the ramen shop!"

The coffee pot beeped, signaling to Gaara that his coffee was ready. He poured himself a cup before answering. "Nothing; Temari merely assumed when I arrived at her lodging." He then turned to walk out of the kitchen, but paused at the doorway.

"Naruto?"

"Yeah?" The blonde snapped to attention once more, having drifted off into his self proclaimed "la la" land.

"…Sharing a bed…sounds nice."

Naruto attempted to shut his mouth, which was wide enough to catch flies with as Gaara slowly disappeared around the corner. He could feel his face heat up and was glad that Gaara wasn't there to see his flushed face.

'Wow…I didn't expect that…'

He turned to shut the coffee pot off, only to chuckle once he realized something.

Gaara had taken less than a half a cup of coffee.

Feeling slightly giddy, Naruto ran off to shower.

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When Naruto finished with his shower, he began towel drying his hair and walked into the bedroom, not bothering to don a shirt since he planning on going to bed anyway and besides, it was too warm for one in the house.

Gaara was already lying on the bed, his nose buried intently in a book. Naruto nearly chuckled at the sight, but decided against it.

"I didn't know you read."

As Naruto sat down on the bed, he noticed that Gaara was just wearing his usual garb instead of any sort of nightwear and frowned. _'Doesn't he own any nightclothes…? Oh…that's right…he __**wouldn't **__own any, would he?'_

A determined expression on his face, Naruto rose and began digging through his drawers. He didn't notice, but Gaara lowered the book subtly and glanced in his direction, curious of his actions.

"Aha!" Naruto suddenly shouted, a bright grin plastered across his face. He turned then, and Gaara got a good view of the clothes the blonde was holding up.

Naruto tossed the baggy white t-shirt and dark gray sweatpants onto the bed, his arms crossing over his chest sternly. "You don't have any pajamas, do you? Well, for now, you can borrow some of mine! Tomorrow we can get you some!"

Gaara was about to protest that he didn't _need _to wear pajamas when he was perfectly capable of falling asleep in the garb he was currently wearing…but then he caught sight of the fire burning in Naruto's passionate blue gaze.

He silently sighed…and surrendered. _'What have you done to me…Naruto?'_

Naruto smiled in triumph as Gaara silently trudged to the bathroom, knowing that the redhead was internally 'pouting' of sorts. It was quite hilarious, actually, since Gaara definitely wouldn't show that side of him to anyone else, save maybe his siblings, of course.

When Gaara returned a few moments later, his day clothes neatly folded in his hands, Naruto couldn't help but chuckle in amusement.

Gaara maintained his somewhat stoic gaze, despite feeling deeply embarrassed. He knew that he looked completely ridiculous—Naruto's shirt size was much bigger than his own, so it almost looked like he was drowning in the white material. Never had he felt so…small.

"That looks…cute on you," Naruto stated, flinching when Gaara's cold gaze landed on him, giving him the impression of a glare. "Hey—I didn't mean that in a weird way, dattebayo! I'm just sayin'!"

Gaara ignored Naruto and instead set his clothes in the corner and, being extra careful to avoid the random ramen cups that littered the floor, crawled up into the bed, turning so that he was facing the window instead of Naruto. The moon shone down upon him and for an instant, he felt so out of place there. His body itched to get up and sit on the rooftop and gaze up at the moon. It had become such a constant part of his everyday life that it felt strange to _not _be avoiding sleep.

He'd been so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Naruto's presence until a pair of comforting arms wrapped around his waist. His breath hitched slightly and his eyes widened; such close contact was practically forbidden before, so how else was he supposed to react to the sudden intimacy?

"Relax…just…sleep…" Naruto mumbled, already drifting off to sleep. The blonde snuggled contently into Gaara's back as if they'd been doing this their whole lives.

Slowly Gaara felt himself calm down and closed his eyes. Naruto tightened his hold around his waist and pulled him closer and Gaara didn't know why, but…

…He let him.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto! If I did, don't you think that Sasuke would be less of a douche bag right now?!**

**Hehehe…hi…guys. –Dodges various random objects- I'm so sorry! I had writers block! I couldn't make AMV's either…guess I just had a plain creativity block. Well, it's gone so…here's the new chapter. **

**Chapter 10: A Heart's First Date Part 1  
**

**________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

For the first time in a long while, it took Gaara several long minutes to force his eyes open, even though he knew before looking that Naruto was already up and gone; the warm presence that the blonde left lingering in the room was slowly disappearing.

Yet, he'd never slept so soundly. Gaara really didn't want to admit that it was because Naruto had been holding him, but realized after a minute or two that it was useless denying it. After all, he'd already confessed to the blonde and it wasn't like his conscious could make fun of him of it's own accord. So, his pride shouldn't suffer any as long as he didn't tell Naruto…

Of course, he had a bad feeling that Naruto already suspected such, but he didn't want to admit that either.

Finally pulling himself out of bed, Gaara glanced at the clock and nearly fell over in shock.

'_I slept until ten?!' _

Okay, so maybe he'd gotten just a _bit _too comfortable sleeping in Naruto's arms. He would have to make sure that this didn't turn into an extended habit that messed with his Kazekage schedule back home.

Speaking of which…

"I need to send a letter to my village and request for a detailed report…then we can work out when I shall be returning home…"

Despite himself, he felt a searing ache race through his chest at the thought. It was inevitable; Gaara would eventually have to leave Naruto. He was the Kazekage of a different village, so it wasn't like he could just stay in Kanoha…besides, it would be too difficult for his body to adapt to such a drastically separate environment.

Trying to stomp down the dread filling his chest, he absently sighed through his nose.

He would just have to deal with it when the time comes…and enjoy Naruto's affections until then. He would give the blonde everything he had…he owed him that much.

A bitter laugh nearly forced past his lips, but he swallowed it down. Not only did he just not do laughing, but maniacal laughter…no, that simply wouldn't do. He was just finally gaining a good reputation; he didn't need to ruin it by going completely insane over a cute blonde…

…Damn love to hell.

Gaara sighed again and careful adjusted the shoulder of the shirt he'd slept in, noting with unease that it was falling off his shoulder. He wanted to change into his normal clothes, but that would have to wait as a caffeine headache was persistently splitting his skull into tiny fragments. Second to a near lethal wound to the chest, caffeine headaches were some of the most persistent sources of pain that Gaara had ever experienced.

Unable to resist the promise of a steaming hot cup of freshly brewed coffee, Gaara dragged his gaze away from his folded clothes (which had been recently washed, he noted uneasily. Just how far was Naruto going to take this…taking care of him, thing?) and headed for the kitchen.

As he'd suspected, Naruto was already gone, probably off training. Gaara was about to make a beeline for the cabinets where Naruto kept the coffee grinds when he noticed a sloppily scribbled note sitting on the kitchen table. Curious, he picked up the note with the care he would use had he been handling a newborn child—not that he'd ever done such a thing—and began reading it.

_Gaara,_

_I left early for training today. I'll be back sometime in the afternoon. I asked Sakura-chan to do some shopping…so she should be stopping by. Don't freak out if she just walks in, okay? She'll bring breakfast too! Oh—and don't eat too much cause I'm taking you out to dinner tonight, dattebayo!_

_Love,_

_Naruto_

_P.S: I washed your clothes. =D_

For the first time in a long while, Gaara seriously considered taking some aspirin. Honestly, you would think that Naruto would at least discuss it with him before making plans for their first…date…

Damn, did that sound strange…

That's when the implications of Naruto's message hit him. _'Haruno-san's coming over? Hmm…I wonder if she'll bring the Uchiha with her…I wouldn't mind a morning sprawl—for training purposes, of course.'_

But of course it didn't have anything to do with how he was itching to choke something with his sand out of frustration. Oh no—he simply didn't have an alternate motive to sparring with the Uchiha other than training in combat.

As he prepared his coffee, he was startled out of his thoughts by a soft gasp from the doorway. Silently wondering when he'd let his guard down enough to not notice the girl's presence, Gaara whipped around and came face to face with Haruno Sakura.

Sakura was carrying several bags of groceries in her hands, but that wasn't what disturbed Gaara. No—it was the fact that she was staring at him in awe and once he realized why, his cheeks nearly burst at the seams with a bright red blush.

He was still wearing Naruto's pajamas…and that damned shirt was falling off his shoulder again!

Startled, he yanked the shirt back over his shoulder and whipped back around to face the coffee machine, hoping that his ears weren't burning a delicate shade of red or pink. "Thank you for bringing…food."

Sakura laughed nervously, "Well…yeah—you're welcome…Uh…"

"I didn't have any nightclothes," Gaara explained, sensing her unvoiced question. "And Naruto simply wouldn't let me sleep in my clothes."

"Oh, all right then."

Deciding to ignore her for the time being, Gaara poured his cup of coffee and headed out to the living room while Sakura began to prepare something decent for breakfast. He took a sip and lowered the cup…

…Only to come face to face with Uchiha Sasuke.

Said male was currently seated lazily on Naruto's couch, as if he'd been sleeping on it for several years. He was still wearing that annoying white outfit that didn't cover much (he had a feeling that Sakura was secretly enjoying this) and he truly looked as if he didn't give a rats ass that Gaara was standing there.

Gaara nearly narrowed his eyes on the male, but decided against it. As much as he would love to take his personal frustrations out on the Uchiha, he knew that Naruto wouldn't appreciate his efforts one bit and would probably be angry with him…and for some reason the thought of Naruto being angry with him made Gaara want to shatter a window in frustration.

It was settled; Gaara was going to begin taking anger management sessions when he arrived back in Suna.

"Don't you look comfortable?" Sasuke suddenly spoke and although he hadn't turned to look at the redhead, Gaara could tell that his eyes were trained upon him…and this aggravated him to no end.

"I could say the same for you, Uchiha," Gaara retorted, resisting the urge to smirk when Sasuke blinked in surprise, having obviously not expected Gaara to reply at all. Honestly, Gaara didn't blame him. Even when around Naruto, he preferred to avoid long conversations and talking in general; he just wasn't one for social interactions.

Sasuke was about to make another remark, when Sakura entered the room, a dangerous glint in her green eyes. "Gaara, your breakfast is on the table. I put the groceries away," She nodded respectfully to Gaara, before turning to Sasuke, the look in her eyes increasing ten fold. "_Sasuke-kun, _I do believe we're leaving now, so why don't you say goodbye to Gaara?"

Gaara blinked. _Okay, _this was definitely different. But to his surprise, Sasuke didn't so much as grunt in response; he merely stood and slipped out the door, silent as death.

The redhead nearly shivered. _'No more death references…I'd rather not think about my time in limbo…'_

Sakura groaned in exasperation, her tone laced with affection even as she voiced her frustration. "What am I going to do with him?"

"He'll come around…" Gaara spoke softly, so softly that Sakura nearly didn't hear him the first time.

"You think…?"

"I _know. _After all, I did…"

He turned to look at her, surprised when he found her staring at him with a deep friendly affection. "Haruno-san?"

"You're right. Thank you, Gaara." She smiled brightly at him before turning and rushing out the door, calling back at him as she left.

"You'd better eat your breakfast before it gets cold!"

Gaara blinked after the girl, but didn't bother to stop her. Feeling hunger eat at his stomach, he returned to the kitchen, pleased when he noticed a full plate of eggs, bacon, and toast sitting on the table. A simple, easy meal to wash down with his coffee.

Now if only the rest of the day could be just as easy…

Gaara nearly groaned. _'Are all first dates this nerve wrecking, or is it just me?'_

Gaara wasn't sure if he'd actually expected someone to reply to that or not, but he certainly didn't get a response.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto! This fanfiction is for entertainment purposes ONLY. So back off, crazy psychotic, bitchy lawyers! –Shoves lawyers with lawsuits out the window- I WIN, BITCHES. :D**

**Okay, seriously…DON'T KILL ME. XD I am SO sorry, everyone! I really didn't mean to leave you all hanging this long! In fact, I meant to update this a long time ago…but I ended up spending too much time and effort on my Ikuto x Kukai story for Shugo Chara…X3 I couldn't help it! I was just in the mood for that story!**

**So…now we get to see the first date! X:D Bwahahaha. I am having so much fun with this…poor Gaara…Hehehe.**

**Anyway, enjoy the Gaara tor-Uh, I mean, first date! BWAHAHAHA. **

**Chapter 11: A Heart's First Date Part 2**

**________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

Gaara was nervous.

Okay, so he was _more _than nervous. He was _OMGAWD; I'm going to explooooooddddeeee _nervous. His stomach was twisting and turning in such an obnoxious pattern that if he didn't know better, Gaara would've labeled himself as sick.

Why was Gaara so nervous?

Well, it absolutely couldn't have anything to do with the fact that he'd never been on a date anymore…and his first one was with Naruto Uzumaki, the one he wanted to be with for his whole life if he could. Not to mention that Gaara wasn't exactly the date type of person. In fact, it wasn't until he'd finished showering that he realized he only had one change of clothes…and those were his casual attire.

If he'd been a girl, he probably would've considered leaping off a bridge in said predicament. Instead, Gaara decided that Naruto wouldn't mind; in fact, the hyperactive blonde would probably wear his casual attire too. Just the mere thought of Naruto in anything fancy made Gaara want to laugh, although he stomped it down. He still didn't _do _laughing.

However, that didn't mean that he couldn't look somewhat presentable, though.

In fact, when Naruto arrived home at approximately three o'clock, he found Gaara standing in front of his bathroom mirror. He was gently running a comb through his red hair, making sure that it didn't hang in his eyes too much. He didn't bother combing the few strands that were hanging over his scar, which Naruto noticed after a moment.

"Why do you like it covered up?"

"Hm?"

"Your scar, I mean. You're making sure that the other strands aren't hanging over your face, but you leave those strands hanging there to cover the scar. Why?"

Setting the comb lightly on the counter, Gaara turned to face the blue-eyed teen that was leaning against the wall. His white t-shirt was soaked with perspiration from his tough training session and he looked tired, but happy all the same. Typical Naruto behavior.

"I'm not exactly proud of its existence…Naruto."

Naruto frowned, tilting his head to the side questioningly. "Why not? I mean, I understand that you would feel bitter because of how you got it in the first place…but shouldn't it symbolize something else now?"

"What do you mean?" He'd been following Naruto fine until this point. What exactly was he trying to say? Naruto had never asked about his scar before, so why was he starting now?

"Well…you _are _loved now, right? So, shouldn't it symbolize the love you experience now instead of the love you didn't have before?"

Gaara blinked as a warm feeling rushed to his face…a feeling he definitely wasn't used to…

"Aw, Gaara, I made you blush! I knew that you could blush underneath that mask you put on! You're so cute!"

Gaara closed his eyes, as the warm feeling in his cheeks grew warmer, mentally resisting the urge to turn around and whack Naruto upside the head for his absurd statement. Because Gaara _did not_ blush! He turned to the mirror and opened his eyes, repeating this inside his head…

_Bloody hell, _his cheeks were bright red!

"Naruto…" Gaara sighed silently through his nose and turned to face the blonde, only to realize with a shock that he was standing right in front of him. He blinked.

'_When did he get that close? Do I let my guard down so much around him that I'm not even fully aware of his movements anymore?'_

Well, that certainly wasn't good.

"Gaara…please don't hide it. I want to see it."

Gaara was started when he suddenly felt a hand on his forehead, brushing away the locks of red that hung stubbornly over the blood red word written there. He tried to take a step back, only to find that his back ran into the front of the sink. Well…splendid…

"There…see! It's part of who you are, so you shouldn't hide it! Just like I don't try to hide my whisker marks!" Naruto grinned proudly at his accomplishment for a moment, laughing lightly when Gaara just stared at him.

"Naruto, why—?"

Before he could react, Naruto leaned forward and pressed a small kiss to Gaara's scar, taking extra care to be gentle should he accidentally irritate the sensitive skin. Gaara froze, unused to the strange sensation.

"N-Naruto?"

_Damn it, _he just stuttered.

Naruto pulled back, an uncharacteristically tender expression on his face. "Don't hide it because I love it. There's no reason to be ashamed of your past; it's a done deal and you learned from your experiences, right? You're a new person now and should be proud of yourself; you've earned the love and respect of those around you. I'm still learning, but I'm gonna catch up to you someday, dattebayo!"

It was so strange…never had he been given such adoration and praise before. But before he could so much as open his mouth to reply, Naruto was shoving him toward the door.

"Your hair looks nice! Now, I need to shower because I refuse to take my date out to dinner looking all sweaty and disgusting! I promise I won't take long! See you in a few minutes, Gaara!"

Gaara just blinked as the door shut in his face, unsure how he was supposed to react to Naruto's bubbly attitude. _'Is he really that excited?'_

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

To Naruto's credit, he'd actually thought this through pretty well. As he'd expected, the blonde was wearing his casual attire and looked as if he was going for a usual stroll in the park. However, there was an air about him that just struck of importance.

Gaara had a feeling that Naruto was trying to impress him. As they walked down the street (luckily not attracting any attention because they looked casual enough to just be walking through the city), he caught Naruto with his electric blue eyes fixed on him more than once. It was a little unnerving, but after he got used to it, he found that he didn't mind it so much since it was Naruto.

Naruto had chosen one of the fancier restaurants, admittedly to Gaara's surprise. He'd honestly been expected something along the lines of a fast food stand or a sandwich bar, since those seemed to be more of Naruto's style. But Naruto was going all out, even going as far as to refuse Gaara's help in paying for anything.

Gaara wasn't sure how to feel about this. He wanted Naruto to act like himself…and Naruto was naturally no gentleman. In fact, he was far from it.

So when they sat down at the table and their order was taken, Gaara hesitantly leaned halfway across the table, his eyes boring into Naruto's. "Stop acting so unusual, Naruto. Just be yourself."

Naruto looked shocked for a second before a bright grin broke out on his face that sent Gaara's stomach turning like tumbleweed.

…Not that it was entirely unpleasant, of course!

The food wasn't too fancy (Naruto wasn't exactly rich), but Gaara thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a cuisine that was different from what he was used to and therefore should be savored. The fish was one he'd never tried before; Gaara didn't bother spending the extra money that could be used for something more valuable to buy and import different kinds of fish into his village.

After dinner, they went to sit down by the waterfall that Naruto liked to train by. The light above was beginning to dim, throwing the world into its late afternoon colors; soon, they would begin transforming into a watery pink and yellow and then finally, to a deep pitch black.

The sound of the waterfall was something that Gaara found quite peaceful; so much that he was tempted to meditate. But he didn't want to ruin his time with Naruto, especially since he didn't know how long he had left, exactly.

He opened one eye to stare at the blonde, startled when his eyes met Naruto's, which were trained intensely on him. "Naruto…?"

"Gaara…I'm going to do something…hold still, okay?"

He had been about to question the teen of his actions when slowly, Naruto leaned forward.

The sensation of Naruto's soft kiss and the feeling of rough yet gentle fingers combing through his hair took the silent gasp that he admitted away. Naruto's eyes were closed, which gave Gaara the impression that he should close his too…but he was too busy admiring the blonde's face up close. He'd never realized it before, but Naruto had really long eyelashes…and his whisker marks looked…amazing up close.

Just when he finally regained control of his senses and closed his eyes, Naruto pulled back, a small smile on his lips.

"I…liked that, Gaara."

Gaara really didn't know how to react to this. He knew that he should say something, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get anything to come out of his mouth.

"Hehehe…sorry, but you looked so cute that I couldn't resist. Like, not the girly kind of cute, but cute in the way that I think if Sai would've seen you, he would totally draw you, ya know?"

Geeze, Naruto was totally rendering him speechless right now. Who knew that Naruto actually could be charming in his not obnoxious way?

"Come on, we should get back! We need to rest up, dattebayo!"

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Several hours later, Gaara gazed at the teenager sleeping soundly on the bed, carefully rolling the letter he'd written to his village up and sticking it in the pocket of his regular clothes, so that Naruto didn't see it. He would run it to the messenger's when he got up in the morning, after Naruto left for training.

Without hesitation, he slipped under the covers beside Naruto, staring at the beautiful face of the one he loved. _'I really don't want to leave him…'_

But he would have no other choice.

Fate _sucked._

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto! This is a fanmade story that portrays what a romance between Naruto and Gaara would be like. I'm merely expressing my love for the idea.**

**Okay…so, seriously. There's REALLY only a few chapters left of this. Like…less than five. Honestly, I am incredibly pleased with how this came out, and how much you all liked it. I didn't expect anyone to like it at all. :( But then again, it's me…who has the self-confidence of…well…Hinata at the beginning of the series. xD**

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 12: An Anxious Heart**

* * *

Gaara watched with a sinking heart as the messenger bird flew out toward the early morning sun, the neatly written message to his village strapped tightly to it. When it returned, it would be holding the news he was dreading: when he needed to return to Suna.

"Eh, Gaara, why are you here?"

Gaara silently turned to find Temari and Kankurou standing there, looking exceptionally shocked to see him. He was just as shocked to find a scroll addressed to Suna in Temari's hands, but didn't show it on his face.

"Sending a message back to our village…to ask when I am needed to return," Gaara replied almost solemnly, turning to stare out the window after the bird, which had disappeared along the horizon. "We cannot linger here for much longer."

"Gaara…"

Gaara breathed in deeply through his nose, absently closing his eyes as a fresh wave of hurt washed over him. Several things ran through his mind: If only he wasn't Kazekage, if only they weren't from different villages…

But after moments of ponder, he realized something important.

There wasn't any chance that he'd give any of that up, even if it meant losing Naruto. Just as he was sure that Naruto wouldn't give up his village and dream of being Hokage either. It was just the realistic version of their story: this was not a fairytale, and so, it wouldn't end like one. They would just have to make a compromise.

"Are you okay, bro? You looked kind of depressed, there…"

Gaara turned to face Kankurou, shocked that he'd actually been able to see past his mask, but then relaxed slightly, remembering that this was his siblings: they probably knew him better than anybody else, even Naruto.

"My…chest hurts…when I think about leaving him…"

Kankurou and Temari looked at each other, concern dripping from their gazes. Gaara did his best to ignore this and instead, turned and abruptly made his way down the hallway. After all, he wanted to talk to Tsunade.

* * *

"Yo, Naruto."

Naruto paused in front of the tree he was practicing his wind jutsu with, turning to see Sasuke and Sakura making their way towards him. To his great surprise, it had been Sasuke who had spoken.

"Hey, what are you guys doing here, dattebayo?" Naruto straightened up, shaking his head a bit to disperse the sweat droplets clinging to the individual strands. He was shirtless, so it didn't do much to rid himself of the ones running persistently down his back and front.

"Well, we were bored and decided to see how you were doing!" Sakura announced, looking around the training area in confusion. "Hm? Where's Gaara?"

Naruto closed his eyes as he pondered the question. "Um…he's probably still at the house…or off running an errand, he told me that he had a few of those to do today."

He opened his eyes, startled to find a fist colliding with his face. He fell into the dirt a few feet away, already mentally counting the seconds he had before he received the worst concussion of his life.

_'One…two…three…f-'_

"_Naruto!"_

'_Damn it.'_

Naruto stared nervously up at the pink-haired girl, who was flexing her arms warningly. "And you aren't with him…_because?"_

"Well, I offered, but he didn't want me to come with," Naruto quickly explained, a slightly saddened expression on his face. "He seemed in a hurry to get to it, too…I'm kind of worried…"

"Heh…he's probably worried about going back to Suna," Sasuke shrugged, absently pulling the shoulder of his shirt back into place, which had been falling lopsided. He then plopped down on the grass Indian style as if he didn't have a care in the world.

Naruto's eyes widened as the realization hit him and he swallowed nervously as a strange ache spread throughout his chest. _'T-That's right…I…I forgot about that…I just got so used to Gaara's presence that I didn't think about the time that he had to leave…'_

"Naruto, are you all right?" Naruto snapped out of his gaze and looked up toward Sakura, who was kneeling in front of him with a worried look on her face. "You had the strangest look on your face just now…"

Naruto tried to smile, but realized halfway through that it was useless trying to fake it and let it dissolve into thin air.

"I'm okay, Sakura-chan! It's just…well…I need to tell you something…about Gaara and I…"

Sakura blinked, looking confused for a moment before realization dawned on her features. "Ah, I figured something like that was going on!"

"S-Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked in mild puzzlement.

"You love Gaara, don't you? As more than a friend I mean?"

Sasuke had the grace to look the slightest bit shocked. Naruto would've laughed had it been any other situation.

"I…" Naruto started, distressed when his words stuck uncomfortably in his throat. "I'm…I think I am…and that…scares me a bit. I don't know how to deal with all of this. I mean, Gaara keeps telling me that he's in love with me…but, I've never really dealt with this much before…except…" He paused there, unconsciously swallowing as the memory of a blushing girl with mysterious eyes flashed in his mind. _'Hinata…would you approve? Am I doing the right thing?'_

Sakura's eyes softened and she reached forward to pat Naruto reassuringly on the shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm sure that Hinata doesn't mind. In fact, I think she'd been happy for you."

"You think so? I just feel bad…I wish that I would've at least taken the time to hang out with her more…"

Sakura smiled. "I think she'd be happy that you're opening your heart to someone that has genuine interest in you! When you love someone, you want him or her to be happy, right? And Hinata really loved you, and she also wasn't the type to hold any sort of grudge, either. I bet she's smiling down at you right now."

"Heh," Naruto looked up at Sasuke, who'd finally broken his silence. "I always knew you were gay."

"W-Wha—! Sasuke!" Naruto whined. "I like girls and boys…but mostly Gaara…so…it's just like…I like girls…and Gaara…? What the hell?"

Sakura laughed out loud. "Really, Naruto, there's nothing wrong with being bisexual! I have a few friends that are too!"

A thoughtful look crossed Naruto's face for a second before it dawned on him. "I knew Ino wasn't fully straight…"

"Yeah…actually, she admitted that even thought she had feelings for Sasuke…she also secretly had a thing for me," Sakura blushed shyly at this, twirling her fingers nervously around in her hair. Sasuke watched with interest, but refrained from commenting. "I told her that I was flattered, but my only love interest is Sasuke-kun."

"Hmph."

Naruto nearly laughed, noticing a small tinge of pink on Sasuke's face. So he'd actually taken to her after all…

"Anyway, we got sidetracked," Sakura announced, returning back to the original subject. "Are you worried about Gaara leaving? You can always just keep visiting him, you know!"

Naruto sighed, "I know…but it feels like…it hurts really bad. I don't want him to leave, cause it feels like…he won't ever come back."

"Dobe, don't you see that you should be talking to him about this instead of us?" Sasuke announced, a bored look on his face. "I have better things to do than discuss your dwindling love life."

"Fine then. How about we discuss yours? So, have you kissed Sakura-chan, yet?" Naruto replied mischievously.

"N-Naruto!"

"D-Dobe!"

"Hehehehee…"

* * *

To Gaara's surprise, he arrived back at Naruto's home to find Naruto asleep on the couch. He glanced at the clock to make sure that he wasn't late and was shocked to find it still before noon. Had Naruto been waiting for him? Or had something happened?

Gaara moved to stand in front of the sleeping blonde, watching almost as if in a trance as his chest moved up and down in rhythm. Still lost within the spell, Gaara attentively reached down and began brushing his hands through Naruto's cold, damp bangs.

Hm, that meant that he hadn't even bothered to dry off the sweat after returning home. Honestly, did Naruto want to catch a cold? He knew better than that!

Gaara scoffed and quickly got up to grab a towel from the bathroom. Once he returned, he found Naruto still sleeping, although he'd turned over so that his left leg was hanging off the couch. Gaara rolled his eyes inwardly and bent to run the towel gently over Naruto's forehead. He was about to move onto his hair when Naruto's wrist suddenly shot out, catching Gaara's in its iron grip.

Gaara's breath hitched as he found himself staring down into tired blue eyes. "N-Naruto…?"

"Ne, Gaara, what were you doing?"

"Your bangs were wet…why didn't you dry off when you came in?"

"Oh…um…I guess I just got distracted and then I fell asleep…hehehehe…" Naruto laughed nervously, moving to sit upright and rub the back of his head. "Thanks anyway for taking care of me, Gaara!"

Gaara glanced away, unable to see the cheerful teenager's smile. It hurt…to know that he'd have to leave that beautiful grin soon.

"Gaara…are you worried about when you go back to Suna?"

"N-Naruto?" Gaara was admittedly shocked that Naruto had figured it out. "How did you know?"

"Well…to be honest…I saw Sakura-chan and Sasuke earlier…and talked to them cause I was worried about you…and it was actually Sasuke that figured it out….hehehehe…"

Gaara blinked. _Sasuke _was helping Naruto out with his problems? Wait, that could only mean one thing.

"Naruto, do they know about us?"

Naruto blushed a light crimson. "Actually, Sakura-chan figured it out on her own…I suppose that I should have expected that…but it still shocked Sasuke, dattebayo! The look on his face was funny!"

Oh _great, _now he was certain to end up clashing with the Uchiha before he left.

"Anyway, why are you so worried about leaving? It's not like we can't visit each other!"

Gaara sighed. "I know…I actually talked to Tsunade about it earlier…she agreed to…nonchalantly send you on more missions that involved places near Suna."

"And what did she ask in return?"

"I have to join her tonight for a drink…" Gaara sighed, not looking forward to the foul taste of alcohol that he was being forced to drink.

"I thought so," Naruto laughed. "Don't worry, it's not that bad."

"_Naruto…" _Gaara droned. "I'm still _underage!"_

"Pft, who _cares? _I don't think that anyone here's gonna run and tell the officials in your village!"

Gaara shook his head. "Anyway, so…then, it's all right?"

"Huh? Oh, that you're leaving for Suna? Don't worry; we'll work it out! What, did you think I was gonna let you slip away from me that easily, dattebayo?"

Gaara wanted to hold it back, but he just couldn't. He turned to Naruto, a genuine smile on his features. "Naruto…"

"Hm?" Naruto questioned in shock. He barely had time to react when Gaara leaned in, capturing his lips in a kiss. "Mm…"

"I love you…" The red head whispered gently against his lips, and Naruto breathed in the spicy scent that washed over him, the one that just screamed Gaara.

'_I love you, too…' _He'd tried to say it aloud, but Gaara was smothering his lips too accurately for him to form words, not that he minded, of course.

It would just have to wait 'til later.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto! This is a purely fanmade piece of work meant to show my love for the romantic pairing of Naruto and Gaara. ^^**

**-Sigh- Okay, I'm going to work on my fanfictions today! Yay! ^^ I've…sort of been neglecting them for my Utube account…Hehehehee. Sorry, guys! –Rubs head nervously- Anyway, yeah. Like I said before, only a couple chapters left of this…and then my first Naruto story ever will be completed! It's almost like a dream! Lol**

**Is it just me, or is this kind of starting to get a bittersweet feel to it? The story I mean? Or it could just be because I'm listening to the 'Dearest' instrumental from InuYasha that they had in the background when Kikyou died…I sort of needed an instrumental that wouldn't be too distracting, but would set the mood of writing for me and that mp3 worked. Oh well.**

**WARNING: DRUNKEN GAARA. I couldn't resist. X3 Besides, you should've seen this coming with the small mention I made about Tsunade in the previous chapter. Hehehehee.**

**Chapter 13: A Heart's Dearest**

* * *

Gaara slipped out of the Hokage's tower, stumbling lightly and barely managing to catch himself on the wall. The night seemed to echo eerily around him, almost as if taunting him endlessly with words that would never be spoken. There was no doubt about it: he was really late and Naruto was probably worried as hell.

He ignored one of the guards that sent him a quizzical look as he stumbled along the path, his vision blurring into twos and threes. Damn Tsunade and her bloody sake...or had it been wine? What the hell was it? He couldn't even remember anymore…

_'Naruto…'_

He had to get back to Naruto. He didn't know why, but it was an urgent feeling spreading throughout his body. If he'd been in his right state of mind, he would probably wonder if that feeling was the only thing keeping him walking down the street. Sometimes, it probably was.

It had probably taken Gaara a half an hour to arrive there, but he did eventually find Naruto's house. As he walked up to the door, he stumbled and hit his head on it, luckily managing to right himself at the last second. Damn it, that hurt! Stupid alcohol!

"G-Gaara?"

He froze in the doorway, his head swimming. Had he opened the door? No—he couldn't remember opening the door. Didn't he hit his head? But then why was the door open? Naruto must have opened it. But why was Naruto there? Oh wait, this was Naruto's house…and he was probably up waiting for him! Crap! He was hoping that Naruto would be asleep…

"N-Naru—to…" Through his hazy vision, he saw three Naruto's, all staring at him with various degrees of shock.

"H-Hey, Gaara! Are you okay, dattebayo?! How much did Tsunade-baasan make you drink?!"

"D-Drink…I…" He wanted to answer Naruto's question, but for some reason, he couldn't remember what the question was. "N-Naruto…"

"H-Hey!" Naruto stuttered as Gaara tried to take a step forward, only to fall straight into Naruto's awaiting arms. "Damn, you really are drunk off your ass, aren't you?"

Gaara didn't even try to answer Naruto's question this time. He just let his eyes fall closed and snuggled into Naruto's chest, ignoring the sensation of Naruto's breath hitching.

"G-Gaara?" Naruto stared down at the redhead with surprise plastered onto his features. Oh yes, Gaara was definitely drunk if he was snuggling: even though they were together, Gaara still wasn't the kind to be overly affectionate.

…And was that a small blush on Gaara's face?

"I-It's hot, Naruto…"

Naruto blushed at this, hoping to God that Gaara didn't randomly decide it was a good idea to strip like he'd seen drunken people do in the movies. No, that was simply too embarrassing. Besides, if Gaara remembered any of this in the morning, he'd surely kill him slowly.

"Come on, let's get you cleaned up! I bet you probably won't remember this in the morning…but I'll take care you, dattebayo!" Naruto announced, softly as to avoid causing Gaara any distress. Gaara blinked up at him, and for the first time, Naruto noticed that Gaara's pupils dilated when he looked at him, even when drunk. He remembered reading somewhere that your pupils dilated whenever you looked at someone you loved…but it also happened when you looked at someone you hated.

Brushing that thought out of his mind, Naruto led Gaara to the bathroom, hoping that he would be able to keep his alcohol down, but knowing that he probably couldn't. When you haven't been drunk before, you were more sensitive to it. _'Oh well…'_

It was his job to take care of Gaara, after all.

* * *

When Gaara awoke, he immediately covered his eyes with his hand, doing his best to ignore the painful throbbing in his temple. "W-What the hell..?"

He felt as if his face had been smashed in with a hammer. That was obviously _not normal, _especially when first waking up…well, unless you're sick of course. Oh dear God, please let him not be sick…

"Y-You're awake, Gaara?"

Ignoring the pain in his head, Gaara slowly uncovered his eyes and looked up to see Naruto in the doorway, a wet rag in hand. The blonde looked worried, but calm.

"N-Naruto? What happened?"

"Ah, I figured as much. You can't remember anything from last night, can you?"

Gaara let his eyes drift off to the ceiling as he racked his brain for anything that could resemble a memory of the night before, but to his dismay…none came. "No…"

Naruto chuckled softly and sat down beside Gaara on the bed, laying the wet rag gently on his forehead. "Well, you came home sometime around one. I waited up for you because I couldn't sleep and I'm glad I did, because you definitely needed me when you walked in the door, dattebayo. Gaara, Tsunade-baasan must've given you way too many drinks…because you practically fell into my arms."

Hearing this, Gaara blushed lightly, turning his head subtly to the side to hide it. _'How embarrassing…'_

"You were talking really weird…and you got sick once, but other than that, I managed to get you in bed without a problem!" Naruto said, then gasped when he noticed Gaara's wince. "I'm sorry, I didn't meant to talk so loud—"

"It's okay, Naruto. It's my own damn fault anyway," Gaara sighed lightly, forcing his heavy limbs to move so that he could pull himself into a sitting position.

"So, how do you feel?"

Gaara contemplated his words for a moment as he leaned back against the wall, before deciding to give the most honest answer he could. "Like I smashed my head into a tree."

Naruto laughed nervously, "Well, you did sort of smash it into my door last night…so…I can sort of see why you feel that way."

"Great," That was honestly the last thing Gaara needed: head trauma. "Did anybody else see me?"

"Well, I'm assuming the guards and the ANBU saw you, but that's about it," Naruto recited, looking up at the ceiling in thought. "You got back so late that I doubt anyone else would've been awake."

"It's okay then…" Gaara sighed once again and gingerly pulled himself out of bed, becoming increasingly self-aware. He was dressed in another one of Naruto's spare t-shirts and pants, both of which were too big on him. "Naruto, where did you put my clothes?"

"Um, they're in wash right now…you kinda had…alcohol stains on them, so I asked Sakura-chan to take care of it for you this morning."

"Haruno-san knows?"

"Don't worry, she was Tsunade-baasan's student, so she knows just how she is," Naruto offered, a grin on his face. "She won't tell anyone."

"Good," Gaara began, stretching a kink from his back. He turned to find Naruto watching him with a serene smile on his face. "What is it, Naruto?"

"Nothing…" He began, but continued when Gaara glared at him for his limited response. "I just kinda…like seeing you in my clothes, okay? Is that so wrong?"

Gaara turned to hide his blush, not wanting to think about the implications of that statement. "Coming from you, yes, it is."

"Wha—Gaara!"

Gaara ignored Naruto and instead opted to find something for breakfast: he may have been sick last night, but his stomach felt fine now. Besides, if he didn't eat, Naruto would have a fit.

"No you don't! I'll make breakfast, you just go and shower, dattebayo!" Gaara blinked as he was suddenly being shoved in the direction of the bathroom.

"N-Naruto—!"

"Here we are!" Gaara caught himself on the bathroom sink as he was shoved into the room, the door slamming shut behind him. He tried not to cringe at the sound, but then gave in when he realized that Naruto couldn't see him.

"Everything will be ready when you get out, Gaara, so take your time!"

Gaara waited until the sound of Naruto's footsteps faded away before he righted himself and looked at his reflection in the mirror. Almost unconsciously, he lifted his hand to rest on his mirror image, almost admitting that he looked okay in Naruto's clothes…_almost._

'_I've never felt this way for anyone before…it's…strange.' _He could feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest, and absently brought the other hand to clench at the spot where it would be, were it not covered by skin and a shirt. _'I love…Naruto.'_

Unaware that he'd closed his eyes, Gaara opened them again, surprised to find that a small smile had appeared on his face…as well as that damned blush again. But he didn't bother to hide it this time, since he was alone.

For the first time in his life, he looked truly…content, even happy.

Gaara sighed happily and lifted the shirt over his head, beginning to prepare for his short shower. _'Naruto…is my dearest.'_

That much was the absolute truth, even if Naruto never felt as strongly as he did.

* * *

**So…yeah, short chapter. X3 Oh well, at least I updated, lol. BTW: Does anyone want to draw Gaara at the end while he was looking in the mirror? I totally want to see that drawn! If you do, please send me a link cause I want to see it! :3 **

**Peace out, guys! And happy Thanksgiving for all of those that live in America, like me! ^^(Doesn't know if the other countries celebrate it)**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto! This is a purely fanmade story that I cooked up for my own amusement! X3**

**Yay, no matter what, this story shall officially be finished today! I am going to type up the epilogue right after I post this chapter. X3 Are you guys excited? I know that I am! And now, I have one less story to worry about! I shall probably write another Naruto story sometime, but not in the near future, I'm afraid. -_-' I'm afraid it's definitely not one of my main fandoms, so I would have difficulty with plots, etc. **

**Anyway, enjoy! ^^ And for those of you that are waiting for my other stories to be updated, please be patient! I am working on it!**

**Chapter 14: A Heart's Connection**

* * *

It had been a few weeks since Tsunade's late night drinks and Gaara had almost begun to adjust to life in Kanoha…when he awoke one morning after Naruto was gone to find a familiar messenger bird tapping at the window.

Immediately pulling himself out of the crumpled sheets, Gaara made his way to the window and opened it a crack, un-strapping the letter from the bird and leaving it to go about its way. His heart sank when he realized that it was from Suna.

…His heart sank even _more _when he read the formal handwriting, politely requesting that he return home to deal with business trades among other things. The counsel had lost their patience.

'_Of course…I should have been expecting this. By all means, I should have returned home a long time ago.' _

He had originally meant for it to be a short visit, but somehow, it had turned into an extended vacation. At the thought, he felt slightly guilty. How could he relax here when his village should be his main priority? As Kazekage, it was his duty to take care of his people, not slack off for personal satisfaction.

They would have to leave the next day.

Resigning himself to his fate, Gaara strode across the house to the bathroom, meaning to take a shower and grab some coffee before locating his siblings in order to prepare for their departure home.

…He'd tell Naruto later. He didn't want to interrupt his training, after all.

* * *

"Aw, man! It seems like we just got here!" Kankurou complained, stretching out on the bed sheets. Temari rolled her eyes, and Gaara resisted the urge to do the same.

"We've been here for _weeks, _Kankurou! Besides, did you forget that Gaara's the Kazekage? We can't keep him here for too long."

Kankurou smirked, one that undoubtfully spelled trouble for Temari. "Now, now. I didn't think you'd complain! You get to spend all that time with your honey…what's his name? Nara Shikamaru?"

Temari blushed furiously, a low feminine yet dangerous growl slipping past her lips. _"Kankurou…."_

Gaara watched indifferently as Temari beat Kankurou over the head with her fan, the blush reducing to a cute dusting across her cheeks.

"Hmph! At least I can find someone, bastard!"

This time, Gaara _did _roll his eyes, having picked up the habit from Naruto during his stay. It was a good way to express his feelings toward his siblings, he found sometimes.

"Gaara, don't just roll your eyes! Help!"

Gaara…just turned and left. There was no reason for him to stay there any longer.

"H-Hey! Traitor!"

"Hmph."

* * *

"Gaara! I went shopping with Sakura-chan! What do you want to eat?!" Naruto called as he entered the house, a broad smile on his face. It quickly disappeared once he realized that there wasn't anyone in the house to answer his question.

"Huh, I wonder where he is? He's usually home by now…" Naruto furrowed his brow in confusion as he set the grocery bag on the counter and began putting away everything that was perishable. "I hope he didn't go out drinking with Tsunade-baasan again…"

Once he finished putting everything away, he glanced at the clock, startled to find that it was past four. "Oh well…I guess I'll just make something for when he gets back."

He quickly threw something together: a quick concoction of lettuce, bread, bacon, tomato, and mayonnaise that somehow became two sandwiches that could easily match the double decker in size. Gaara still hadn't shown up yet, so Naruto went into the living room and ate his sandwich, trying to swallow the nervousness in his gut…telling him that something wasn't as it should be.

And that something was Gaara.

* * *

Gaara walked into Naruto's house at half past six, silently cursing himself for falling asleep by the river while he'd been meditating. He'd definitely been hanging around his blond lover for far too long if he was starting to pick up some of his bad habits.

"Gaara?"

The redhead looked up to see Naruto standing in the doorway to the kitchen, a quizzical frown on his lips.

"Where on earth were you? You could've left a note…"

"Sorry, Naruto, but I really didn't expect to be out this long. I went to the river to meditate, but ended up falling asleep." He admitted, trying not to show that he was ashamed of this. "Also, I have…something to tell you."

Naruto instantly snapped to attention, a serious expression on his face once he caught Gaara's tone. "What is it?"

Gaara took a calming breath before continuing. "I received a letter from my village this morning. I'm afraid that I must return to Suna tomorrow morning. I am sorry for not informing you sooner, but I did not wish to disturb your training."

Naruto's expression went from shock, to acceptance in a matter of seconds. "Ah, I see. I knew that was coming up soon…"

"Did you eat already?"

Naruto blinked, the change of subject sounding strange to his ears. "Yes, but I left you a sandwich in the fridge. It isn't the kind that needs to be heated up, so you can just take it out and eat it."

"Thank you."

Naruto followed Gaara into the kitchen, arriving just in time to see Gaara take out the plate with his sandwich, inspecting it quizzically. "It's called a BLT. I didn't feel like cooking, so I whipped up something simple."

"Ah…" Gaara turned and sent him a small appreciative smile. "Naruto…"

"Hm?" Naruto turned from where he'd been digging in the fridge for a bottle of water. He wasn't sure why, but he was definitely experiencing some major déjà vu.

"I love you."

Naruto blinked, a tinge of blood rushing to his face, coloring it much like the ripe tomatoes in Gaara's tasty sandwich. "A-Ah, I don't think I'll ever get used to being told that all the time, dattebayo…"

Gaara resisted the urge to laugh at the blond's hilarious expression and instead focused on finishing his sandwich.

"Gaara, is there someplace you'd like to go…to um…you know, spend our last night together?"

Gaara tried to not reflect on those words…_last night together…_

"Let's go to that hill…the one we sat one during our walk last week." Gaara suggested, a small smile still on his face.

"Hey, that sounds good! Let's go!" Naruto grabbed ahold of Gaara's hand and began insistently dragging him in the direction of the door.

Gaara managed to hold down his instinct to stiffen under the contact, reminding himself that this was Naruto…and that he had no reason to fear Naruto's touch. _'Even though I'm not accustomed to having him as my lover yet…I think I can get used to this.'_

He was unaware that his hold tightened on the other male as he was dragged out of the house.

* * *

About an hour later, they still sat together underneath the stars on the hilltop, neither saying much of anything. They'd had a few conversations already, but they were experiencing a comfortable lull in conversation, where nothing really needed to be said.

"You'll be okay, right?" Naruto suddenly questioned, glancing at the male next to him.

"Of course," Gaara breathed, returning Naruto's gaze. "I know that I'll see you again soon…so why wouldn't I be fine?"

"Ah…" The conversation lulled again, and Naruto found himself becoming unnerved by it, even though it had previously been a comfortable one. He did not like silence, and silence between him and Gaara was no different.

He finally decided that this was the opportune time.

"Hey, Gaara…remember what you said before, about winning my love?"

Gaara's expression turned to a guarded one now, much to Naruto's chagrin. Didn't he know that he didn't need to hide from him?

"Gaara…at first…I wasn't sure what to think," Naruto admitted, forcing himself to make eye contact with the redhead, to show his sincerity. "But after a while…I started to realize that…"

Gaara waited on a baited breath, not even realizing that he was holding it in the first place.

"I love you too…" Naruto finally exclaimed, a grin spreading across his face. "Damn, I don't think I've ever been so nervous."

Gaara blinked, shock adorning his features. _'Did…he just say…?'_

He did.

For the first time, Gaara reached out to hug Naruto.

Naruto knew that it definitely wouldn't be the last.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: DO NOT OWN.**

**So yeah, the ending is HERE, FOLKS. :D Finally! No more randomly watching Naruto episodes for inspiration! I can focus on different stories now! –Guiltily glances at my Gx story that's been going on for like half a year now- Hehehehe…yeah…that one.**

**So, enjoy.**

**WARNING: Really short. Like, fewer than five hundred words.**

**Epilogue**

* * *

Gaara sat down his paperwork and grasped his favorite coffee mug, taking a long drink from the beverage. _'Hm…finally finished.'_

It had been two weeks since he returned from Kanoha, and Gaara was nearly shocked to say that he'd slept almost every night, despite the blond not being there with him. However, the night before had not been one of those nights. Instead, Gaara had opted to sit up on the roof and think.

…Of course, he could've done his paperwork, but perhaps a little of Naruto's procrastination may have rubbed off on him too.

When he'd left, Naruto had promised to visit soon. He didn't say how soon, but Gaara had a feeling that it was a lot sooner than he'd originally expected…

"Gaara-sama, the counsel requests a meeting tomorrow morning to discuss the distribution of the water be just obtained."

Gaara nodded toward one of his higher ups, his signal to leave. Gaara watched as the door closed softly behind the ninja, a small smile lighting up his face as he felt a familiar presence seem to materialize behind him.

"Hello…Naruto."

Gaara could feel the blond smile against his neck as he laid his head on his shoulder, his arms wrapping comfortably around Gaara's waist. Gaara was finally beginning to get used to this.

"You didn't think that I'd stay away for long, dattebayo?"

Gaara resisted the urge to shake his head in exasperation. Only Naruto would get away with sneaking into the Kazekage's office without permission like he was now.

"No…I didn't."

That was just fine with Gaara.


End file.
